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Why I Love My Kindle. . . and You May Like One Too!

November 1, 2011 By 12 Comments
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The Amazon Kindle. If you don't have one it may just be on your wish list this holiday season. I (Lisa) have had the blessing of owning one since 2008 when my husband surprised me with the very first version for my 40th birthday. He thought I would be having joint replacement surgery on four fingers soon and it would come in handy. Little did he know surgery would be put aside a few weeks later as I spent a week in the hospital (the flesh eating bacteria, nasty stuff!) I receive many emails from people who have asked me what I like about the Kindle and how it works. I thought I would put all my answers in one place so you can see why I like it and make your own decision. For the record, I had the first version of Kindle 2008-2010, and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Books, Founder's Blog, Person w/ Illness, Tools, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Crutches Don’t Have To Be Depressing! An Amazing Story

May 26, 2011 By 1 Comment
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Debbie Farmer "LemonAid Crutches"(TM) is the first company to create lovely designer crutches in rich, vivid colors and gorgeous, expressive fabrics. Being on crutches can be a sad, depressing experience, but this store makes it a bit more enjoyable and a whole lot more cheerful. On the LemonAid Crutches (TM) web site it shares, "No one wants to be on crutches. They hurt your hands, they hurt your arms and they certainly hurt your sense of style. Many have tried to tackle the challenge of adding comfort to an uncomfortable item, but duct tape and washcloths look…well…tacky. That's why we created designer crutch-wear that's not only comfortable, but fun and fabulous looking." Founder Laurie Johnson's personal testimony to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Articles, Hobbies-Crafts, Joy, Links, Our Best Tips, Person w/ Illness, Tools, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

10 Tips for Building Resilience in the Face of Chronic Illness

May 17, 2011 By 5 Comments
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By Mary J. Yerkes When faced with the pain and fatigue of chronic illness, do you tend to rise to the challenge or fall apart? Resilience is the ability to roll with the punches, to bounce back from stressful and challenging events. It involves adapting to change and addressing life’s problems constructively. When you have resilience, you discover new opportunities in the face of great challenges. In contrast, if you lack resilience, you tend to dwell on problems, feel victimized by life’s misfortunes, and turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms such as substance abuse or compulsive shopping. You may even develop such mental health problems as depression and anxiety. Resilience isn’t about “pulling yourself up by your … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Articles, Coping Skills, Person w/ Illness, Tools, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

A Migraine Sufferer Shares Her Best Tips to Ease Chronic Pain

April 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment
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By Lisa Heath For someone who suffers from chronic pain, you know what a chore simple life tasks can be to you. Sometimes you are forced to do nothing-you shut down, or is it better to say your body shuts down. "I have told you these things, so that in Me you might have peace. In this world you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). By the time I was 18 years old the migraines I had since I was a little girl had reached an extreme high. The pain level was on average a 6 to 8 each day. I often prayed to God asking him to take away the tremendous pain, so I could pray and read my Bible. At times the pain was too bad to even pray; I had to sleep. I would wake up with the pain barely lessened. The … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Articles, Person w/ Illness, Tools, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Swallow Large Pills Without Gagging: How To Do It With Ease

February 19, 2011 By 6 Comments
swallow-pill

Trying to swallow large pills is one of the most frustrating parts of taking multiple medications. Here is a tip to avoid gagging on them and having them feel like they are stuck in your throat. Have you ever have some of those pills that look so big you think they belong to a large animal, not a human being? One of the biggest deterrents to my taking vitamins regularly is that some days I just can't swallow those pills without the gagging reflex kicking in. Having to swallow those big pills can cause me to start even feeling panicky and that makes swallowing the large pill even worse--because then it does get stuck! And it's an awful feeling when that happens. I recently read this tip in a magazine about how to swallow large pills … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Our Best Tips, Tools, What's New? Tagged With: , , ,

What is the Best Time of Day to…

May 11, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Ever stood around the pharmacy & wondered where all the people suddenly came from? As someone who lives with a chronic illness you may want to print this article out for your fridge or to stick in your Woman's Health Resource Journal to refer to when you are making plans. When should I have surgery? As early as possible in the morning. When you live with an illness I know it can be hard to get up & get there to a surgical center or hospital. But let's be realistic. . . are you really sleeping anyway? And most often you are unable to eat, drink or take your medications in the morning, so the sooner in the day you can get in, the better off you will be physically. Plus, studies have shown that patients have fewer anesthesia … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Articles, Caregiver, Health News, Organizing, Our Best Tips, Person w/ Illness, Tools, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Lisa Shares About Joint Replacement Surgery Logistics

May 3, 2010 By 2 Comments

May is Arthritis Awareness Month & the Arthritis Foundation will be celebrating their 60th Anniversary. Many of you know I had joint replacement surgery on four fingers on my left h& in November of 2009. In the middle of my recovery I recorded five videos about the surgery. The recovery, the splints, & physical therapy. If you do not have a rheumatoid arthritis these videos may not be particularly "helpful" for you, but as a patient, I found very few resources for actual patients that were formative about what to expect. You can watch them at our YouTube channel. Feel free to share them! Lisa Copen Founder of Rest Ministries … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Founder's Blog, Our Best Tips, Person w/ Illness, Tools, Videos, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Living with Chronic Pain Isn’t Fun . . . But it Can Be Funny!

May 2, 2010 By 3 Comments

I was walking through a store yesterday & overheard two women who were clerks at the gift shop speaking. The conversation went something like this: "She was recently diagnosed with MS, but she is doing really well. She has a really great attitude." "Well, she must be in remission then if she has a good attitude." "No, I don't think she's in remission. She has just decided to take whatever life throws at her & try to have best attitude possible." "Well, most people go into remission when they have MS. It probably can't be that bad." It took everything in me to walk by & not jump in & share exactly what I thought of the one woman's perception of chronic illness. One of the more difficult parts of illness is learning to live with chronic … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Founder's Blog, Friend Has Illness, Joy, Person w/ Illness, Silly Stuff, Tools, Videos, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Anyone Love Peas? You May Love This Gadget for Aches!

March 23, 2010 By Leave a Comment

If you have any part of your body that is sore & would benefit a bag of frozen peas over it, you may want to reconsider your treatment & try this wonderful new gadget from CVS pharmacy called "Peas Cold Therapy." For many years medical professionals have recommended taking a bag of cold frozen peas out of the freezer to put this over any area where you have swelling or joint pain. The bag of frozen peas molds easily to whatever body part needs the colf therapy. It has the right temperature, & offers some pain relief. There is nothing wrong with sticking with the back of frozen peas. But when Rest Ministries founder Lisa Copen has a wrist tendon that tends to move out of place, she needs something to be able to hold the cold pack in … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Health News, Links, Our Best Tips, Person w/ Illness, Tools, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

You Can Learn to Use The Computer Better

March 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

A lot of you email us saying, "I haven't quite figured this out yet." Or "I don't know how to do this on your web site." While we are trying to keep it as simple as possible here at Rest Ministries with emailed subscriptions & search boxes, we know it can feel overwhelming sometimes--especially if your medications are making your brain feel like it's on a roller coaster ride. But don't sweat it! A quarter of Internet users said they wanted to search Google for something, but when placed in front of a computer, couldn't figure it out. Instead, they either completely failed to get to any search engine or ended up running their query on a different search engine -- usually whatever type-in field happened to be at h&. If you're looking … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Links, Our Best Tips, Technology, Tools, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Review: Coffee Brew Station Great for Weak Hands

March 11, 2010 By 2 Comments

My husband and I recently got a coffee pot as a gift, but it didn't quite fit the decor we wanted so we headed over to Kohl's with the $40 credit, a 30% off sale price coupon to find a new coffee pot. My right hand is quite deformed now from rheumatoid arthritis and I could barely pick up the pot each morning, so we knew a fancier, heavier pot was not the solution. We ended up with the Hamilton Beach 48465 Brewstation Summit Ultra 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker and it retails on Amazon for about $60. I love it! Here are a few things to consider: it's not a cappuccino maker & you don't use individual coffee flavors like some of them. This is basically just a regular coffee pot, but the coffee goes into a pot/container inside the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Cooking, Founder's Blog, Links, Our Best Tips, Person w/ Illness, Tools, What's New? Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hurt Feelings Really Do Cause Physical Pain

October 19, 2009 By 1 Comment

Does your illness flare when you get your feelings hurt or feel left out? One study has proven that hurt feelings aren't all in your head! Researchers in California found a physiological basis for social pain through a study which monitored the brains of people who thought they had been "cut out" of a computer game by other players. The shock & distress of this rejection registered in the anterior cingulate cortexthe same part that also responds to physical pain. (Science, Oct. 2003) So when people say something that can really "get to you..." try to let it go & pray about how to best respond. It's not just your emotional state that can be impacted, but your physical state & pain levels too. Related articles Gene Linked … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Caregiver, Church Leader, Explaining Illness, Friend Has Illness, Health News, Hurt Feelings, Medical Professional, Person w/ Illness, Person w/ lll Spouse, Statistics, Support Group Leader, Tools Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,
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